


only he knows

by vertigoo



Series: how they came to be [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Team Crafted
Genre: Character Death, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Neglect, Violence, opposite au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:33:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21885283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vertigoo/pseuds/vertigoo
Summary: Sky has a few secrets he doesn't want his best and only friend to know about. It's not like they can hurt him, so why should he tell when instead they can hang out around town, just like they always do?
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Series: how they came to be [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1576558
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	only he knows

Sky hung off the arm of the old wooden chair in his room, tapping the ground beside his head to the time of the clock hanging on the wall next to him. He counted each second, waiting uncomfortably for his dinner to be passed to him through the small flap on the bottom of his door. 

It wasn’t the food he was waiting for; he’d grown sick of stale bread and a bottle of water many years ago. He was instead waiting for the tapping at his window that would come after he’d put the food away, a part of a routine he’d managed to master over the past four years. Then he could open the window, greet his best and only friend, climb down the vines on the castle wall, and run off to the market to do what any other eighteen year old boy would do. 

Every day was the same, but it was better than how it had been before, when all he knew was his room and the hallway outside it. When the only face he’d seen aside from his own was his dad’s, with emotionless, piercing, glowing white eyes, and stiff, harsh features that refused to crack a smile or frown. It had only ever been anger with him. 

The food slipped through the flap on the door. Stale bread and a bottle of water, again. Sky got up and took the tray it was placed on, setting it on top of his bed, and then the tapping on his window came, just on time. He grabbed a few ingots he had managed to steal from his dad that he had hidden away under his mattress, before opening up the window as quietly as he could.

“Fancy exploring a new part of the city?” His friend whispered, a mischievous look in his red eyes, his same old ragged brown coat looking almost like a cape in the slight night wind.

Sky raised an eyebrow, his smile beginning to grow into a disbelieving one. “Is there _really_ more of this city to explore? Or are you just trying to keep me to yourself for longer, Ty?” 

Ty rolled his eyes, but didn’t try to stop himself from grinning. “There’s more, don’t worry. Figured you could get us into some special places since you’re eighteen now.”

And just like that, Sky’s smile was gone. “Ty, there’s no way we’re getting into a club,” he sighed, climbing out of the window and closing it behind him, “I’d need an ID and you’re still underage. Neither of us need to be getting into trouble. Why don’t we just go to the night market again?”

“Ugh, come _on_ ,” Ty groaned, climbing down the vines and hopping onto the ground, wincing when his landing was louder than he had hoped for, “we’ve been there, like, a million times!”

“Not a million, just two thousand, one hundred, and fifty-four.”

“You’ve been counting?!”

“Perhaps,” Sky muttered, stepping off the vines quietly before crouching down just as Ty was, heading towards the castle walls as quietly as they could, “but that doesn’t matter. It’s the first place we ever went on the first night we ever met, isn’t that more important than some stupid club?”

“Hey, don’t diss clubs until you try them. The ones I’ve been to serve some killer mocktails.” 

Sky turned to Ty, his mouth open in shock. “You’ve been to clubs before? Ty, for Herobrine’s sake-” 

Ty quickly put his hand over Sky’s mouth. “Shush! You’re being too loud, do you _want_ us to get caught?” Sky closed his mouth and bit his lip, and only then did Ty bring his hand back to his side. “My clubbing experience isn't what matters right now. Now let’s go.” 

Sky nodded, and the pair continued across the grounds, hiding in longer grass or thin bushes whenever the lights nearby were too bright or one of the guards walking around got even close to their line of sight. The first few times they’d done this Ty had asked questions, questions Sky wasn’t comfortable with asking. After they got caught the first time, however, the questions stopped.

The boys managed to get over the castle wall without any issues, and soon they were running like their lives depended on it towards the city centre. It felt like it was just them and the ground beneath their feet, the buildings and people they ran past as they joked around on their way to the market feeling like cardboard cutouts. They were young and dumb, and the world had been so forgiving as of late that they felt like were finally able to let their guards down.

Their paces only slowed when the familiar raucous chatter and the bright lantern light of the night market became more apparent, their laughter quieting down so they could listen in on whatever bargains were being made. Most of the stalls only sold things they’d seen before, and most new things were either too expensive or too big for either boy to bring back to their homes. Finally, something caught Ty’s eye. 

“Hey, Sky, look!” He whispered just loud enough to be heard over market-goers, grabbing his best friend’s arm so he wouldn’t walk away. “Don’t those look so cool?” The teen pointed to an item at the stall he’d stopped next to, excitement in his eyes.

On the table lay a weird object unlike any Sky had seen before. It had two large grey square pieces, connected by what looked like a headband of the same colour. On the inside of the squares was a soft cotton-type fabric, and on the outside were two glowing green squares which seemed to have no purpose outside of aesthetics. “What… are they?”

“I think they’re headphones,” Ty said, dragging Sky closer to the booth so they could get a look at the price tag. Ty winced, “and they’re way out of my price range.” The boy opened up his tattered brown coat so he could search through his pockets, revealing all he was carrying on him was a few iron ingots, a handful of mixed nuggets, and other useless things.

“Then I’m buying them for you.” Sky said dutifully, no emotion on his face as he marched for the stall, pushing aside the people standing between him and the vendor. “Excuse me, sir?” He called out, gaining the vendor’s attention.

“What do you want, boy?” The older man huffed, his mouth hidden by a bushy grey moustache. 

“These.” Sky picked up the headphones by the middle, holding it out like a strange, new foreign object. “They’re twenty iron ingots, correct?” 

The vendor looked him up and down, his brows furrowing together suspiciously. “Yeah, not that they work, bloody pieces of crap.” As Sky began rummaging through his pockets for ingots, the old man grew curious. “Tell me, boy, what’s wrong with your eyes?”

Sky stopped. “My… eyes?” 

“Well?”

“I, uh…” Sky began to sweat, trying to think up an excuse. “It’s an, um… a mutation. From a potion.” He muttered, clearly unsure of his own answer. Quickly he brought out the ingots he needed to pay and ran off, dragging Ty along, yelling out a quick thank you to the man before he could ask anymore questions.

They stopped in a small alley where the noise was quieter and the lights were dimmer. The two boys stood there, regaining their breath in silence, until Ty suddenly burst into laughter. "Hey, what's so funny?" 

"A _mutation from a potion_? Really?" Ty manages to get out, "You could've just told him you're part enderman, dude, he wouldn't think any less of you for it. This city is, like, the most diverse place in all of Minecraftia."

"Yeah, I just… had a bad feeling, I guess." Sky smiled half-heartedly at his friend, before handing over the headphones. He'd been meaning to tell Ty the truth. But how do you tell your best friend you lied to him for years? That you're not in the tallest castle tower because of a crime your parents committed that was then passed down to you? That your father is one of the three gods?

"What do you say we go to that club you wanted to go to?"

Ty's eyes widened in shock. "Wh- dude, for real?"

"Sure, we've got time. How bad could it possibly be?"

-

"Klüb Ice?" Sky looked up at the imposing building before him. It was all grey concrete and stone, save for the large pink and blue neon lights displaying the club's name. The music was the only thing keeping him from thinking Ty had brought him to visit a prison. It was so loud he could hear it clearly from outside, its electronic beat already worming its way into Sky's head.

"Hey, don't diss it 'til you try it!" Ty said, linking arms with Sky as they headed towards the entrance. "It may look a little off but they serve the _best_ drinks, and the music's pretty good too."

"And you know this because...?"

"A friend smuggled me in a couple times, back when my clothes were more cloth than patches."

"Uh-huh." Sky directed his attention towards the bouncer at the door, a huge man with muscles that looked like they could knock him out in one hit. "What are we supposed to do about the bouncer?"

"You just stand there and look pretty, I'll do all the talking." Ty grinned as Sky rolled his eyes. The line separating the boys from the bouncer thinning out quicker than Sky had anticipated.

The bouncer opened up the rope to let in a group of well-dressed young men, and suddenly Sky and Ty were at the front. The burly man looked between the two of them for one second, before his eyes lightened up, recognising one of them clearly. "Ty, is that you?"

"I thought you said your friend smuggled you in." Sky whispered.

“I can be friends with a bouncer, can’t I?” Ty whispered back. "Jordan, my man, what's up? It feels like it's been ages!" Ty exchanged a half hug with the bouncer. “We should catch up!”

“We should, but not right now. I’ve got a job to do, remember?” Jordan’s smile quickly vanished, going back to his former look of a cold, intimidating guard. “My boss has been way more strict than normal lately, which means you can’t get in. Unless,” Sky could practically feel the bouncer’s eyes roaming him behind his sunglasses, judging him, and he gulped, “your friend here is 18?”

Jordan and Ty both looked at Sky expectantly. Realising they were waiting for him to answer, Sky instantly began fumbling over his words. “Yeah! I- uh- I am. I am… an adult.”

Jordan raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. “You got any proof of that, young man?” 

Sky gulped, glancing over at Ty as if asking for him to come up with an excuse, but none came. So much for standing there and looking pretty. Sky beckoned Jordan closer, before leaning in to his ear and whispering something to him. He had no idea whether or not what he was doing working or not, or if what he was doing even worked on normal humans, but it was worth a shot.

All of a sudden, Ty had pulled him back using the arm he had linked around Sky’s, earning him an irritated look from the older. Ty gestured to Jordan with his head, so Sky turned to look at the bouncer, only to find his posture completely straight, a dazed look in his eyes as they gently glowed purple. “What did you do to him?” Ty hissed.

“Nothing, don’t worry about it,” Sky whispered back, although he wasn’t sure of himself in the slightest, “Jordan, we would like to go into the club.” Sky said, trying his best to look confident in what he was doing. Jordan nodded and opened up the rope, letting in Sky and Ty. It may have been years since the last time he had had to do that, but he still had it. Now he just had to get rid of the cloud of guilt following him. 

As soon as they were inside, the thumping beat of the electronic music almost making the floor underneath their feet shake, Ty pulled Sky aside. “Okay, so first of all, don’t go wandering around here. Klüb Ice can be rowdy at the best of times, and you’re fresh meat here, so we gotta stick together.

“Second of all, don’t drink drinks from mysterious strangers. I don’t know what books you might have been reading up in that tower of yours, but it’s always a bad idea, trust me.” Sky was about to say something, but Ty quickly shushed him. “And finally, the moment we get out of here, you are telling me what the fuck that thing was back there with Jordan, got it?” 

Sky nodded nervously, not really paying attention to where Ty was dragging him as he began to think about what he’d gotten himself into. He didn’t want to have to lie to his friend anymore than he already was, but it’s pretty hard to explain away what he just did with his flimsy half-enderman backstory. 

“Cool. Now, I need to show you something.” Ty said, taking a seat at the booth he’d dragged his friend to. He reached under his cloak and brought out a small, unassuming square box, setting it down on the table. “Open it.”

Nervously, Sky pulled the box closer to himself as he took a seat. He opened it slowly, half expecting some kind of prank to be hidden underneath the lid, only to find a spectacularly shiny golden amulet with a large purple gem in the centre, seemingly glowing under the pink club lights. Sky picked it up by the chain, holding it carefully in his hands, almost as if it were an antique plate ready to break. “Oh my Jeb, Ty…”

“It’s a bit much, I know,” Ty said, gently grabbing the amulet from Sky and motioning for him to turn around so his back faced him, “but I’d been saving up some money and, well, it’s your eighteenth, so…” Ty clipped the amulet around Sky’s neck before spinning his friend back around so they were looking at each other, “What do you think?”

“I think it’s fucking expensive, that’s what I think,” Sky grabbed the pendant and held it up closer to his face, examining it closely for any possible flaws, a sign that it’s components weren’t as pure as it was letting on, “How much did you pay for this?”

“Some gold ingots and some nuggets, but that doesn’t matter. The vendor told me the gem was fake, but the gold is 18 karat,” Sky’s jaw dropped, but before he could say anything about how Ty did too much or how much he didn’t deserve such a thing, Ty continued, “You always do so much for me, whether it’s getting me out of a sticky situation, or buying me new clothes, or even just being there for me when I’m down, but I’ve never really done anything like that for you. So, the amulet is kind of an apology _and_ a birthday present.”

Sky looked up from the amulet hanging from his neck to meet Ty’s nervous gaze. Neither of the two did anything for a few seconds, before Sky brought Ty in for a tight hug. “Ty you’re the _best_.”

Ty laughed, hugging his friend back with the same amount of strength. “Nah, I think you are.” Sky laughed with him, before they pulled away from each other, smiles now on both of their faces. 

There was nothing but the sound of electro music coming from the comically large speakers in the haze that came after as Sky and Ty ordered themselves food and drinks. Although Sky wasn’t a fan, Ty seemed to be enjoying himself, and that was enough to keep him happy. It was his eighteenth birthday anyways, and no matter what his father did, he had a right to enjoy himself.

The two boys were chatting away happily, Sky ever so slightly tipsy and not really caring that Ty was stealing all the chips from his bowl, when there was a gentle buzzing throughout the club. “Testing! Testing!” A low voice said, the words coming out strange due to his foreign accent. “Hello everyone, and thank you for coming to Klüb Ice!” 

The club goers cheered, and Sky and Ty couldn’t help but join in, turning their attention towards the stage at the back of the club with a flashing disco floor in front of it. On the stage stood a man with blonde hair and an orange visor covering his eyes, a large grin on his face as he stood confidently, dressed in a white and pink suit that had a few of the top buttons on the pink undershirt shirt undone. 

“As most of you may know, my name is Bruno, owner of Klüb Ice! But we appear to have some new faces tonight,” Sky almost swore the club owner was talking about him specifically, and he wasn’t sure if it was the club air or the drinks he’d had, but he couldn’t stop himself from giggling, “and I think it would be great if we could introduce them to the Klüb Ice family!” 

The crowd cheered again as Bruno hopped off the stage and began working his way through the club patrons, making sure everyone could see and hear all the new people, until he finally arrived at Sky. “What’s your name, then?” Bruno handed over the microphone to Sky, and the lie that slipped from his tongue came all too easy.

“Augustus,” he slurred, grinning sloppily, “and it’s great to be here! This is the _best_ eighteenth birthday I’ve _ever had_.” 

Bruno laughed a little at what Sky said, and was quickly joined by other people in the crowd. “Lovely to have you, Augustus! I have to say, I think you’re my favourite newbie for tonight!” Bruno headed back to the stage and continued to talk for a few minutes, before the music came back on and everyone went back to dancing and drinking just as they had been before.

As more and more people flooded in, the more Sky and Ty had to shout at each other to be heard, until even when they were talking to each other as loud as they could they couldn’t understand what the other was saying. Ty got up from the booth and Sky could see his mouth move, but he had no idea what he had said. His friend disappeared into the crowd, and already Sky was beginning to feel anxious.

There was something off in the air, but he couldn’t quite place his finger on what. Ignoring the first thing Ty had told him about the club, Sky got up and began working his way through the crowd in search of his friend. Seconds felt like minutes, and minutes felt like hours as he scoured the dance floor, not a single sign of his friend in sight. 

Then, like the universe had heard him over the thumping beat and the incessant yelling and was willing to help him out just this once, Sky ran right into Bruno. “Oh, Augustus! I’m so sorry!” Bruno said, looking Sky over for any harm, then stopped when he saw the look in his eyes. “You are worried. What’s wrong?”

Sky looked around nervously, before sighing and bringing Bruno to the nearest door he found, leading the two of them to a balcony outside. “I… can’t find my friend. I wanna go home since it’s getting kind of late, but I don’t want to leave without him.”

“Rick?” Sky hesitated for a moment, before nodding. Ty must have gone by a fake name too, then. “I saw him leave with two people out the front. I was wondering why you two weren’t together, but I just assumed you had wanted to stay behind.” Bruno gave Sky a hug, realising the teary-eyed look in the younger’s eyes. “Oh, Augustus…”

“He said we were going to stick together since… since I’m so new to this kind of thing…” Sky sniffed, wiping away the tears brimming his eyes, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be crying. I’m being ridiculous.”

Bruno shook his head. “No, you’re not. I was once in your shoes, when I was younger. But it’s okay, you’re here now. Klüb Ice is like a family, and I’m sure I could figure out a way to help you stay.” There was a weird tone in the words Bruno spoke, a tone Sky wasn’t a fan of.

Backing up a little, Sky gave the club owner the most genuine smile he could. “No, it’s okay. I think I’ll be fine to just head home by myself. Maybe… maybe another time though, okay Bruno?”

A smile quickly spread on Bruno’s face. “Of course! It’s been fun having you here, Augustus! Same time next week, yah?” Sky nodded hurriedly, before leaving the balcony and heading straight for the exit. 

“Hey, watch it!” Sky almost fell to his feet after running into Jordan, who’d snapped out of the trance he’d been put under. “Wait, aren’t you-”

“Sorry, can’t talk right now, I gotta be somewhere.” Sky interrupted the bouncer, noticing the light orange glow of the sun beginning to bleed into the dark blue night sky on the horizon. How could he forget? If his father arrived at the door, waiting for a plate to be passed through the flap at the bottom and nothing came, he would be infuriated. Sky never liked when he saw his father‘s face.

The soles of his feet were practically burning as he ran through the city, cursing the sun for rising so fast. He took as many back alleys and shortcuts as he could, but in the end, it was all for nothing. The sun had risen, and as Sky was pulling himself through the window of his castle tower, he saw his father standing in the doorway, not a single sign of emotion on his face.

-

Sky had never been one to go down without kicking and screaming the whole way. His father had described it as childish. His mother, Jeb bless her soul, had described it as persistent. But now, with the amulet ripped from his neck and lying on the cold floor of his room somewhere as he was dragged through the halls of the castle, Sky couldn’t even muster a whimper.

Those men Bruno had seen Ty leave with. He hadn’t left with them voluntarily, he now realised. They were some of his father’s men. How could Sky have been so foolish as to assume his father wouldn’t pay closer attention to him now that he was an adult? He wouldn’t be surprised if he had known the whole time, that Sky had been leaving his tower and exploring every night like some kind of fairytale princess.

Almost all the fairytales Sky had read had some gruesome part towards the end, whether it be having the evil stepmother’s eyes pecked out or the handsome prince being banished after going blind. Sky didn’t want to know the gruesome part of his fairytale. He had prayed every day for it not to come, for it instead to end with him and Ty ditching the city they’d been born in and living anywhere else. But it didn’t seem like that would be happening.

His father stopped. They were in a room Sky had never seen before. Gold trinkets lay glittering on any surface they could, and at the end of the room was a portal of pure obsidian, releasing a haunting noise loud enough to drown out any thoughts in his head. 

The grip on the back of his shirt was let go, and Sky contemplated for a split second about bolting. That hope was quickly squashed. His father took different items, glittering gold, sparkling a deadly purple hue from the portal’s dim light, and began to dress Sky up in them. Bracelets, rings, necklaces, and a headband that dug into the sides of his head. The silence and the blank expression his father wore only served to make it all the more sinister as he splashed a potion over Sky.

Then, Sky was being led through the portal, once again being dragged along like a child to their parents’ party. Stepping into the open door to a realm unknown, Sky closed his eyes, hoping to the one god who had heard his prayers and answered in the past that it would be something beautiful on the other side, even though the Aether of legend had always been told to have a far lighter entry than this one.

After seconds that felt like hours, Sky was shoved to the ground, and he opened his eyes. They were in a world unlike any he’d seen before, with red ground that resembled something he’d rather not think about and lava and fire everywhere he looked. Already he was beginning to sweat, the heat unbearable even to his tougher demi-god skin. There was someone missing.

“Where’s Ty?” Sky asked his father, who was showing off as he always did, using his powers to manipulate the stiff hot winds of the realm they were in into an elevator of sorts, touching down to the almost-soft ground as if he weighed nothing at all. All the man did was nod upwards.

Sky looked up and tried his best to muffle the scream that came out of his mouth at the sight of his friend, unconscious in a cage of glass, his face flushed red and his hair so wet it stuck to his head in clumps. However, his father still laughed, clearly pleased with the reaction he managed to get out of Sky anyways.

“Good to know I got the right filth,” his father said, every step he took closer causing his son to step back two more, “he certainly has grown since the last time I caught you two sneaking out. How long ago was it? Two years?”

Sky gritted his teeth, now with his back up against a cliff, the overhanging casting a shadow over his father dark enough to show off the white glow in his eyes, giving him an even more predatory look. “What do you want? Why have you brought us here?”

His father got close enough to his face that he could feel his breath on his face, somehow ice cold amidst the heat hot enough to boil the weakest alive. “You have betrayed me for the last time, Skybrine. I was soft on you when you were a child, but now that you are an adult, I believe your punishment deserves to be more harsh.” His father floated up to the glass cage Ty was in, knocking on the glass so that he would wake.

Sky rushed forwards to make sure nothing bad would happen to his friend, even if he wasn’t able to reach. When he was younger he had yearned for the days where he would be an adult so he could learn how to harness his powers, but if his father was implying what he thought he was… Sky didn’t want to think about it.

Initially, Ty seemed perfectly fine. He was waking up and acting as most did when they had just had a good, long rest. But those content emotions quickly changed into fear, first due to realising he was near overheating in a foreign dimension, and then after noticing the god watching him through the glass like a zoo exhibit. “Herobrine?” The boy managed to choke out, his voice cracking and dry. 

“Thank goodness you aren’t dead yet,” Herobrine said, not making eye contact with Ty, instead keeping his eyes trained on his son, “however I would recommend saying final goodbyes.”

“What is it? What did I do? I’ve made my prayers, I’ve tried my best to follow the law, I-” Ty slowly turned his head to see where Herobrine was looking, “...Sky?”

“You and Skybrine here are well acquainted, I gather?”

“Skybrine? No, no, his name’s Sky, _just_ Sky, and he-”

“-lives in the tower of a castle with no one else with a window that opens both from the outside and the inside. He sneaks out every night, with you, going behind my back and being an absolute nuisance.” The disdain in Herobrine’s voice caused Sky to wince. 

“I-I… you can’t be related to him though, he told me his parents were an enderman and a human. So there.” Ty smiled, but his eyes clearly showed how distressed he was. 

“I’m sorry, Ty!” Sky yelled out, “I never meant for the lie to go on for this long, I just didn’t want you to freak out if I told you the truth!”

“No, no, no! This is just a joke! That’s what this is, isn’t it! Well, I’m not laughing, Sky!” Ty said, the tears rolling down his cheeks evaporating before they could reach his chin. The heat was clearly getting to him and it was a wonder how it hadn’t earlier, Sky watching in horror as Ty broke down in front of his eyes.

Sky forced himself to look away from his friend, fearing that if he looked at him any longer he, too, would crack. “Why did you bring him here? He’s done nothing wrong, he doesn’t deserve this!”

Herobrine drifted slowly to the ground, completely resilient to Ty’s cries. “He means something to you. I’m not an idiot. I knew you were sneaking out with him, all I needed to do was catch you when the time was right,” Herobrine began to circle Sky, agonisingly slowly, “You see, when someone of our kind turns eighteen, they must undergo a… _ritualistic process_ of sorts.”

“Then why is Ty here?” Sky said, glaring daggers.

“I have decided to up the stakes,” Herobrine stopped, standing between Sky and the portal out, “If I beat you in a battle, not to the death but to something close to it, you come with me to the Farlands, where I will train you to be the perfect successor. Ty, as you call him, will not survive.” Sky instantly took a more defensive stance.

“If you beat me, however, then you are both set free. I will never bother either of you again,” Herobrine chuckled, “Although, with your weakened state and half blood, I highly doubt that outcome possible.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Let’s just say the effects of the potion I hit you with will be wearing off _very_ soon.” Before Sky could get another word out of his mouth, he screamed in pain. It felt like he was burning all over his body, like his skin was singing and melting away. He quickly looked at the gold trinkets his father had decorated him with to see the burning red skin surrounding wherever they touched. He tried to pull off the accessories, but they quickly burned his hands, melting at his touch.

Herobrine tossed a golden sword at Sky’s feet, holding his own loosely, the handle almost falling out of his grip. Trying to ignore the feeling of scorching hot metal burning his flesh, Sky picked up his own sword, gripping it in front of himself with two hands like it was the only thing tying him to life. Without hesitation he ran forward, pulling the sword behind his head and then bringing it down hard, being easily blocked by his father.

No matter what Sky did, Herobrine blocked his every move, even when he attacked in his blind spots. He faltered for a second, looking for a new angle to attack from, when Herobrine suddenly pushed him backwards with his wind powers, knocking Sky far enough that he could almost feel the lava below him touching his hair. “You can forfeit at any time,” Herobrine said, using his sword to play at the gold melting to Sky’s skin, “I wouldn’t think any less of you for it.”

“It’s not _you_ that I care about,” Sky spat, glancing between Ty, sobbing in his glass cage, and his father, emotionless as he kicked Sky onto his stomach, “I’m not giving up.” Between his need to tear off the trinkets he wore and scream, being kicked in the stomach repeatedly, and the stiff heat of where they were, it was making it hard to do much of anything, let alone fight. 

Herobrine grabbed one of Sky’s legs, picking him up and throwing him against the cliff. Ty’s screams of concern were overshadowed by the pounding in Sky’s ears and the laughter that he could swear was inside his head, laughter he had never heard before, laughter that sent chills running down his spine. His father gripped his head by the scruff at the back of his neck and forced him to face his piercing white eyes. “What happened to the fighting?” He never wanted to hear his father laugh again. 

Sky whimpered as he was thrown back to the ground, burned, bruised, and broken. “I believe I’ve won?” Herobrine didn’t wait for an answer, “You’ll get over him eventually, Skybrine. With the appropriate amount of training, I’ll make you a worthy successor. Then you won’t have to worry about caring for any humans anymore.” 

There was nothing he could do. He felt frozen to the scorching red ground, watching in pain as his father began to walk towards Ty’s cage at an agonisingly slow pace, clearly testing Sky’s patience. When Herobrine stopped underneath the glass box, Sky finally took his eyes off of his back and looked up at Ty. 

He’d never seen Ty truly _scared_ before. Happy, sad, angry, all primitive emotions comparable to that of fear, they were all something Ty had shown before. Sky had even been willing to believe he was incapable of fear, at least until right then. He hated seeing his best friend like this, vulnerable, shaking, defenceless. _Scared_. 

Ty looked up and for a split second the two boys locked eyes. Normally there would’ve been a reassuring smile, a thumbs up, even a wink, anything to help Sky calm down when they were in trouble, but this time there was nothing. Just fear.

He wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but after that sight, something stirred from deep within him. By Jeb it _hurt_ , but he was already in pain, so what was a little more? Sparks flew from his fingertips, purple like poison, purple like pride, purple like the amulet Ty had gotten for his eighteenth birthday. “This isn’t finished.”

“...what?” Herobrine turned around, the white glow in his eyes steadily growing brighter, a sign he was getting ready to use his powers.

Sky stood up, ignoring the way the gold digging into his legs was burning him alive and the bruises forming on his back pounded rhythmically, trying to remind him of the state he was in. “I said, _this isn’t finished._ ” Before the elder could say anything more, Sky concentrated a portion of his power to his fingertips and threw it straight at him. 

In his shock, Herobrine forgot to dodge, getting a purple fireball straight to his face. The force of the blow knocked the god backwards, and Sky began to throw more and more of his power at him, getting closer each time, until they were in the same positions as before, the only difference being who was winning. He contemplated how to drive the message home, that he wasn’t as weak as his father thought he was, that caring for someone can actually be good, when he got a closer look at the man’s face. He’d done _nothing_. His powers weren’t hurting him one bit.

His eyes glowed brighter than they had before, anger coursing through his veins, at the situation, at his father, at _himself_. “Why won’t you just die?!” Sky screamed, ripping his father’s sword from his hand and raising it up high, before plunging it into his chest. There was legitimate shock on Herobrine’s face, before he burst into a cloud of white ash. 

Sky had just killed his father, a god, and a king, all at once. But that didn’t matter to him right now, not when Ty was near death. He knew his strength was fading him, so he had to move quickly. 

Forcing what little adrenaline was still in his system, Sky flew over to Ty, trying his hardest not to think of the parallels between himself and his father. He punched at the glass until shards stuck in his hands and he was hit with a wave of cool air, only now realising just how inhuman the temperature of where they were was, and quickly rushed to the portal. He held Ty like a baby, keeping his head over his shoulder as he tried not to wake him up from his unconscious state.

Sky may have only been to the Nether twice, but he was absolutely certain he never wanted to go back to his homeland now.

-

After getting through the portal and making sure Ty wasn’t dead, Sky collapsed to the ground. He quickly began to pull the gold from his skin, ignoring the sickening feel as it tore away. He never wanted to see that shit again. Despite being horribly wounded and tired, Sky tried to drag Ty through the castle to a room where he could get fixed up, before being found by one of his father’s guards and, after a quick explanation, led to the infirmary.

Even though he protested, the nurses laid both Ty and Sky out on two beds, and quickly got to work. He wasn’t sure how long he was out for, but by the time Sky had woken up, Ty was already back to almost perfect health and resting in the chair beside his cot. 

“Hey, Sky,” Ty said, a weak smile on his face, “You, uh, doing okay?”

Sky tried to turn to face his friend, but the bandages healing the burns on his neck were stiff. “Could be better.”

“Yeah… yeah I, uh, kinda noticed. Just wanted to make sure,” there was a laugh, but it felt fake, “why didn’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“You know what.”

“Cutting straight to the chase, huh?” Sky bit his lip, “I, uh, I was scared. I was scared that _you_ would be scared.”

Ty’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Why would I be scared?”

“‘Cause I’m the son of Herobrine, duh. Herobrine, god of death, destruction, the Nether,” there was hesitation, then, “you were all I had after my mother died. I didn’t want to lose you, I… I cared too much.”

“Oh, Sky,” Ty wrapped his arms around Sky and hugged him tight, pulling away when his friend let out a hiss of pain, “Sorry, sorry!”

Sky laughed weakly, doing his best to push himself so he was sitting upright. “It’s alright, Ty.” There was a comfortable silence, and it was just like it had been before, as long as they ignored the stiff white sheets and bandages. 

“My Lord! My Lord, you’re awake,” a nurse said, clearly flustered and overworked as she stumbled into the infirmary. She had long grey hair tied back in a bun, with droopy eyes and wrinkles showing her age on her face. “We must hold your coronation, lest anyone get too suspicious.”

“Coronation?” The confusion on Sky’s face was quick to disappear, and a dark expression came over him. “Ah, yes. That. I… I suppose we will.” 

“Your advisor is telling me we should hold it tomorrow, but keep it quiet. A private event, with no one but castle employees and your friend to attend. Is that alright, sir?”

“Yes… I suppose it is.” The nurse smiled before rushing off to her next job.

As soon as the elderly woman was out of sight, Sky began to try and get himself out of his cot, clearly in pain as he strained his muscles. Ty forced him to sit back down and began looking around the infirmary for a wheelchair, settling for an office chair tucked behind a desk, and helped him on. “Where are we going, _My Lord_?” The last part was said teasingly to stir a laugh from his friend, but nothing came.

“My room. I don’t think I can handle being in this infirmary any longer,” Ty nodded. He pushed his friend out the door of the infirmary and was instantly blown away by the size of the castle they were in. He had been inside before, of course, although it had only been Sky’s room, and it was certainly impressive from the outside, but the high ceilings and grandeur arches made it appear even bigger from the inside.

“Ty?” Ty shook himself out of his trance.

“Yeah, Sky?”

“I said to take a left.”

“Oh, r-right, of course.” Ty chuckled nervously as he rounded the corner. It seemed that the real consequences of Sky’s actions were beginning to weigh on him. He hadn’t done anything _wrong_ , per say, Herobrine was corrupt and clearly didn’t care about human life, but Sky had said himself he was scared that Ty would be scared of him for his roots. He was scared people would think he was like his father. 

That, in and of itself, was enough proof that he was nothing like him. Herobrine was the god of death, with no regard of who he hurt as long as he got what he wanted, but Sky had been willing to put his life on the line to _save Ty_. A god of death wouldn’t do that. A king of the Nether wouldn’t do that. Sky was more than his father’s son, he had his own wants, beliefs, and morals, and there was no way that Ty would let him forget it just because he was now the king of not only the small city state they lived in, but the king of the Nether too.

“We’re here,” Sky pushed open the door that he and Ty had stopped in front of, revealing the room he had been trapped in for a near decade. Ty rolled him in, stopping beside the bed. The amulet was half hidden beneath the cold sheets of his bed, the gem in the centre still faintly glowing the same way Sky’s eyes did, “Can you grab the amulet for me, please?”

Ty reached down and picked up the gift he’d given his friend. The pendant felt somewhat warm in his hand, but he chose not to question it. He had had enough questions answered for a very long time. Gently, so as to not aggravate Sky’s burns any further, he tied the amulet back around his neck, watching suspiciously as the gem’s glow grew brighter for a second, fading just as quickly.

Sky smiled, before turning to Ty. “It’s getting late. Go find a room, I don’t want you sleeping out there when you can be here,” Ty smiled back and nodded, but before he could leave the room, Sky added on, “I have some ideas, actually, for tomorrow, but I’ll explain tomorrow.” Ty left the room, confused about what Sky had in store for them.

-

Sky was in a fresh set of clothes, taken from his father’s wardrobe. It was uncomfortable, being in the same clothes worn by the man that had treated not just him but everyone he knew wrong for so long, and even though his being half brine made the healing process much quicker than a normal human, his burns were still making ordinary actions painful. The servant that had dressed him had told him the clothes he wore were the best the castle had, though, as he had pulled the gold-embroidered t-shirt over Sky’s head, not too dissimilar from the one he wore normally. 

What was more uncomfortable, however, was the way the eyes of the castle’s employees bore into him as he stood at the front, the shining gold of the ball and sceptre he was holding in his hands making him shake slightly out of fear. This was stupid. Why should he be scared of some stupid metal? Why should he have to go through this stupid coronation process? 

There was a weight on his head, causing him to hunch until he was reminded of where he was and what he was doing. “Your new king, Skybrine the First.” Everyone in the room bowed and curtseyed out of politeness or respect, the order sending slight chills up Sky’s spine. He hated this. He wanted out, and he’d been in for barely a day. 

After giving a quick speech, or as quick as a coronation speech for a new monarch could be, he rushed away with Ty, removing all of his accessories aside from his new crown and his amulet. “We’re getting out of here.” 

Ty fiddled with his coat, unsure whether to keep it or throw it away now that he was kind of a part of the royal court. An honorary part, but a part nonetheless. “But aren’t you the king? What’s everyone supposed to do without you around?”

“The king never really makes decisions for himself, that’s what the advisor is for,” Sky ducked into a large room with a four-poster bed that looked like it could swallow the both of them whole, “Besides, I have some… not-so-great memories here. And I don’t want to relive those memories every day of my life.” When he said that, he touched his neck, where the burn scars had already healed over, leaving the skin there paler than the rest.

“I get that,” Ty shrugged off his coat, taking the few things he had left in the pockets and shoving them in a small satchel that had been stored away in a set of drawers, “But what about the people that work here?”

Sky laughed as he tied the bed sheets into a chain, throwing it out the window once he was sure it was long enough and tying the end still inside to a desk, “They don’t take me seriously here. I mean, why would they? I wasn’t able to get myself out of that damn tower until you came along ‘cause I was too busy moping, what hope do I have running a city state?” There was an edge to his voice as he said it, and his amulet glowed brighter.

“Well then, where should we go?” Ty asked quickly, calming down when he saw Sky’s amulet return to its normal brightness. Maybe that gem wasn’t so fake after all.

“Anywhere. Nowhere. Once we’re out of here, we’re a bunch of nobodies, and honestly?” Sky smiled, “I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

**Author's Note:**

> and so part one of four of the opposite team crafted origins is complete! thank you to my best friend lukas for reading over this youre a legend bro


End file.
